Sally Lightfoot Crab: Complete Care Guide

Let's learn everything you need to know to give the best aquarium life to your Sally Lightfoot Crab:

Sally Light Foot: Care Guide

Prices: You will typically spend about $20 or less to get a Sally Lightfoot.

Tank Size: You only need about a 20-gallon with lots of live rocks and current to mimic their natural ocean environment. They love to live amongst live rocks and hide in the caves, with lots of currents pushing them all the time, and they will have the best time in your tank.

Care Level: They are straightforward to take care of. They are a great addition to your clean-up crew because they love eating algae, and they are very to have in your tank.

Temperament: They are semi Aggressive. So, as they get older, you will notice their aggression elevating. So, you always want to be cautious of them as they do get older. Make sure they are not bullying your fish or your other inverts.

Reef Compatibility: Yes, they are a great reef crab to have in the tank. They are good about eating algae around the tank, keeping the algae across the corals down. The only problem you might face with them is with the weak corals, as they can hurt weak corals while trying to clean the algae off.

Acclimation: Make sure to acclimate them slowly, as acclimating fast could severely hurt them. So, however long you acclimate your fish, double the time for these crabs.

Maximum Size: They get about 3-inches in size. They are pretty big crabs, so you need to stay cautious as they get older.

Colors: Most of the Sally Lightfoot crab's body is brown, but if you look close, they have very pretty yellow and orange stripes going down their legs and polka dots around their body. So, up close, they are gorgeous.

Origin: They come from the Indonesia area and the Caribbean. So, they are found in a bunch of different places.

Water Parameter

  • Temperature: 72-78 degrees Fahrenheit
  • dKH: 8-12
  • pH: 8.1-8.4
  • Salinity: 1.023-1.025

Diet

They are omnivores. They are going to be eating algae and also the leftover food and waste around the tank. So if you have got a detritus rise in your tank, you sure can put these little guys, and they will take outstanding care of that.

Tankmates

You can house multiple of these crabs in a tank, but you don't want to make sure that you have enough algae to supplement them. So, if you have too many crabs in one tank, you will have to supplement them with dry seaweed continuously. 

Water Chemistry

Calcium, Magnesium, and alkalinity are essential to keep the levels up. That will help them grow strong shells every time they shed, which is once or twice a month. Having a good level of these minerals is necessary for them to have a good, strong shell. You want to keep nitrates and Phosphate under check because their spike is really hurts these crabs.

Be Cautious!

When they grow full size, you might see them bully you little fishes and inverts. So, as they get older, if they start eating too many algae and still want more and more food, you might want to take him out and put him in another tank with stronger fish that will not go after. Always be cautious with them!

Happy Fishkeeping!

 

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